


Sincerely, Peter Parker

by thinmint_writer



Series: marvel one shots [8]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers - Freeform, Bullying, Death, Endgame, Far from home, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Infinity Stones, Iron Dad, Iron Man - Freeform, Irondad, Major character death - Freeform, Marvel - Freeform, Moving On, Other, Peter is Tony’s son, Sad, Shuri - Freeform, Spider-Man - Freeform, Spideychelle, Suicide, Suicide Notes, The World Moves on, This is really sad, Tony loves Peter, mcu - Freeform, midtown - Freeform, thanos - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-05
Updated: 2019-06-05
Packaged: 2020-04-08 12:40:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19107298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thinmint_writer/pseuds/thinmint_writer
Summary: "As some of you know, Peter Parker..." Tony stopped a moment to take a deep breath, then continued. "Peter Parker recently took his own life." It was silent enough to hear a pen drop. A single tear dripped down the man's cheek. "He was like a son to me. I loved him, my girlfriend loved him. Everyone loved him. I guess..." He stopped again. "I guess he just couldn't see it."The billionaire cleared his throat and pulled a folded piece of paper out of his suit pocket. "I wouldn't be here... but he left a note in which he asked me to come here and read this letter."---In which Tony Stark visits Peter's school after his death to read a letter he wrote to the world.





	Sincerely, Peter Parker

**Author's Note:**

> WARNING
> 
> This story is kind of dark and it does talk about suicide.
> 
> Also, the italics are flashbacks.

Tony Stark stood on a stage in front of a crowd; not a scene he was unfamiliar with, but he didn't want to be there. He didn't think he could stand to be there any longer.

He wished he was there for another reason. Any other reason; anything else. But he wasn't.

"Excuse me," he said into the mic, voice hoarse and filled with sadness. "May I have your attention?" The crowd of teenagers in the auditorium went silent; no one knew why he was there, only that he had requested to speak to the student body of Midtown School of Science and Technology.

"As some of you know, Peter Parker..." Tony stopped for a moment to take a deep breath, then continued. "Peter Parker recently took his own life." It was silent enough to hear a pen drop. A single tear dripped down the man's cheek. "He was like a son to me. I loved him, my girlfriend loved him. Everyone loved him. I guess..." He stopped again. "I guess he just couldn't see it."

The billionaire cleared his throat and pulled a folded piece of paper out of his suit pocket. "I wouldn't be here... but he left a note in which he asked me to come here and read this letter." With a heaving sigh, Tony scanned the crowd of students. In the very front row sat two familiar red-eyed faces; Ned and MJ. Peter's best friends. 

MJ nodded at the man tearfully, telling him to go on. Ned stared blank-faced at the curtain behind him, unmoving.

Slowly, the genius unfolded the paper, and after stilling for a long moment, he began to read the words written in the neat handwriting of the late Peter Parker.

"Hello. It's me; to be more specific it's Peter Parker. I guess no one saw this coming. I guess I got really good at acting okay." Tony paused for a moment. He should have seen it. How could he not see it? He was thinking the same thing for the umpteenth time since May had called him, only a week earlier.

_"Tony! Tony!" the woman cried over the phone, large sobs interrupting her voice and taking away her breath._

_The billionaire sat up on his chair, suddenly alert. "May? What is it? What's wrong?"_

_"Peter," she sobbed. "It's Peter. He— he— I think he's dead Tony! Please, come quickly."_

_Within the minute, Tony was in his suit and flying towards the apartment. It took him five minutes to get there. He was too late._

_May had called the ambulance, which arrived two minutes after he did. But they were too late._

_Peter Parker was pronounced dead on the scene. Suicide._

The man snapped from his thoughts and continued reading the letter. "I've been thinking a lot lately... about a lot of things. Mostly secrets. That word is so empty, but it means so much. Secrets kill. They trick people and they hurt. And it's not even the secrets that get out that hurt the most. No. It's the ones that stay hidden." Tony stopped again; he should've asked more questions.

_That afternoon, instead of going on patrol, Peter promised his mentor that he would help in the lab. He arrived twenty minutes late, just as th genius was beginning to worry about him. He had a large purple bruise on his cheek; fresh._

_"What happened, kid?" Tony asked him, examining the injury._

_The boy sighed. "Oh, nothing, just... accidentally hit myself with a door on my way out of school."_

_The billionaire looked at him doubtfully. "You sure no one's bothering you?"_

_"I'm positive. " The teenager shot him a smile, and they began working._

"One secret I've been thinking about," the man read on. "Is that of Spider-Man. No one really knows what he goes through. They can make guesses, but I doubt they would guess the half of it." Tony looked back at Ned and MJ; Ned was hunched over with his head in his hands and MJ was crying, slouched in her seat. "Most people wouldn't guess that Spider-Man was just a kid. Most people wouldn't guess that Spider-Man was an orphan. Most people would never even think that Spider-Man was bullied. They would never wonder if he was depressed."

Tony's voice broke and his eyes filled with tears again, but he tried to hold them back. "I guess you all must be wondering why I'm talking about Spider-Man. Truth is, if you haven't caught on yet, I am Spider-Man. Me, the scrawny nerd from Queens that likes to build Legos and watch old movies. The guy that was too shy to talk to the girl he liked. The kid that was brave enough to fight crime, but not to stand up for himself. I am Spider-Man."

_The billionaire sat in a conference room with the rogue Avengers, who had only just come back to discuss revising the accords. They were in a heated discussion when a teenager came running into the room._

_"Mr Stark!" he exclaimed. "I just got my acceptance letter to MIT!"_

_Tony stood up, eyes wide with excitement. "Holy sh*t, really?" Peter nodded excitedly and handed him the paper, which he read dutifully._

_"Uh, who's this kid?" Sam asked, and Peter suddenly became aware of the rogue Avengers. On any other day, he might have been willing to punch them all for what they did to Tony, but he was too excited that day._

_"I'm Spider-Man."_

"I know that my city needs me, so I'm really sorry to leave them. But... the city, the people that don't know anything about me... those are the only people that need me. I know what's about too be said; 'oh no Peter don't think like that we need you.' But cut the bullsh*t and be honest with yourselves. Yeah, I have some friends, but most of you guys... most of you treat me like garbage." Tony looked out over the students once again, wondering who fell into each category. Who had made the kid he loved want to hold on, and who had pushed him closer to saying goodbye?

With a sigh, the billionaire looked back down at the letter. "I've never held it against any of you; I hate myself too. But the way you guys treat me... the way you treat some of those other kids... it's not okay. Maybe you all don't realize the damage that you do, with your actions and with your words. So I'm here to tell you. You may think that when you call someone a name and tell them to go kill themselves that they won't take it seriously. You may think that when you punch or trip someone they'll get over it."

_"Do you ever just... hate the world?" Peter asked quietly as he made a new batch off web formula._

_Tony looked up at him. "I guess. You alright kid?"_

_The boy gave him a weak smile, but there was a bit of sadness in his eyes. "Always."_

"But that's not true. What you do... what you say... it matters." Tony's voice caught in his throat. "And you can take it back. You can say you're sorry. But they'll remember. And they'll think about what you said and the things you did. And maybe, if they're like me, they'll start to believe it." 

"I know I don't deserve everything that happens to me, but when people call mew a loser or pin me against a locker... I feel like I do." Tony just stared at the letter, trying to will himself to keep reading; to do what Peter asked. "Maybe I should tell someone about it. That's what everyone says, right? But it's just not that easy. It's easier to hide it and pretend like I'm happy. Pretend like I don't hate myself. Pretend like I'm not going to end it."

_"Mr Stark, if I die," Peter began. "Will you promise to take care of May? And Ned and MJ? "_

_Tony looked at the kid. "Why would you die?"_

_"Like... in battle or something," he assured his mentor. "Just promise me."_

_"Alright, alright. I promise. But don't worry kid. I'm going to make sure you don't die. You'll outlive me by a long shot."_

The billionaire was very nearly crying as he kept reading, because he promised. And he couldn't keep him from dying. All he could do was fulfill his promise. 

"I guess you can consider this the secret that killed me. Don't cry over me; I'm really not worth it. But if not nothing else comes from this... just don't forget me. Don't forget why I did what I did. And don't blame yourselves. Find a better hero to keep Queens safe; there's tons. Just... move on. Please. Sincerely, Peter Parker." 

Tony swallowed as he finished reading. Then he refolded the paper and returned it to his pocket, reaching down and gripping the podium in front of him for support. "I lost everything." It came out in a whisper, and then without warning, he walked off the stage. Out out the auditorium. Out of the school, and to his car. 

Once the door was closed behind him, he put his head inn his hands and let the sobs rack through his body. 

Peter Parker was gone. 

Tony broke his promise. 

And the world moved on.

**Author's Note:**

> Comment your thoughts. I like to hear from you guys.


End file.
